Your detestable, alluring smile
by Amorficus
Summary: She knew very well, that what she was getting into, was a bad, bad idea. Her instincts were screaming at her loudly, protesting against the decision she didn't know she had already made. Damn him and that annoyingly beautiful smile. OC/Hirako Shinji. Canon-verse. Rated M for language, graphic violence and possible future lemons.
1. The end, the beginning

This is a prompt I got a few weeks ago, that refused to leave me alone. So. Like any other good person, I've decided to try and share this with you, the readers. Feedback is most welcome, also please do correct me if I make blunders while writing this, as I'm not from an English speaking country and lack a beta-reader.

The story more than loosely follows the events of the manga, starting from the Soul Society arc. I do not know yet how long this fanfiction will be, so I'm unable to tell you how much of the original story I'll (loosely) cover. Frankly, I still have no idea really where I'm headed with this fic –cough-.

Now then; All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future. –wriggles brows-

Last, but not least, I have included non-english words before every chapter with their respective meanings.

 **Kendo** \- a Japanese form of fencing with two-handed bamboo swords, originally developed as a safe form of sword training for samurai.

 **Kenpo** – a martial art with a primary focus on self-defence. Its techniques are almost entirely counters and almost exclusively a stand-up martial art, using various hand strikes, kicks, elbows, knees, throws, and joint locks in some cases.

 **Haori** \- a traditional Japanese sort of hip- or thigh-length kimono-like jacket.

 **Katana** \- a long, single-edged sword used by Japanese samurai.

* * *

 **Chapter One**  
 _The end, the beginning_

 _._

Everything happened so fast. In fact, it was so fast, time seemed to slow down. You figure this only happens in movies, manga, imagination – take your pick. Time slowing down before your inevitable end – spectacular. If this is the moment you are supposed to glimpse through your life, no thanks. No really, I have no want to think of the stupid things I did, that resulted in this particular event.

As the pavement was inching closer in record time, I took my last shaky breath.

Pain.

And then there was nothing.

Just darkness.

* * *

Alright, so I suppose you are curious as to what happened, so I'll give you a quick summary.

My name is Amai Shiho, call me Shi. No honorifics please. I am.. was an 18 year old girl. Rather short for my age, as I barely reach 160 cm. I have short, ruffled black hair, purple eyes and my skin is rather pale. I'm not particularly fond of my looks(ahem, height), but at least I have curves in all the right places; not too little, not too much. It's not all bad, really.

My struggles began 4 years prior, when my parents passed away in an accident. Or that's what the official report states anyway – not like they can say, 'oh hey, they got murdered slash eaten by a weird abomination with a mask'. I started _seeing_ after it happened. Their lifeless bodies on the ground, blood splattered everywhere and that heinous creature right in front of me. That's when I blacked out. I survived, as you might assume, not sure how entirely, but my guess is someone took care of the thing before it managed to do me in as well.

After that everything went to hell. I was hospitalized for 3 weeks, not really due to my injuries, but because once I regained consciousness, I went into shock and then, in my not so stable state, spouted things about monsters and ghosts. I should consider myself lucky they didn't put me in an asylum. Thankfully I had the mind to shut up quickly enough, when I realised no one else sees them and once they declared me safe of mind, I was released.

But now I was 14 without parents. Without any relatives, actually. It's not like I was going to starve, coming from a decently wealthy family I had a house and enough money to put me through life and school for quite a few years if I used it right, but I was left all alone. Loneliness can be scary.

So, I adopted a routine to keep myself together.

Wake up.

School.

Kendo and/or kenpō.

Homework.

Sleep.

I was miserable, but I was managing. I had my martial arts, some friends and it helped me pull through life. Once I was 16 I also got myself a part-time job in a cute little tea house. Alright, I might've said my life went to hell after my parents' passing, but that's not actually what lead to my death. It was cause I started work at that blasted tea house. And that blasted guy. The son of my employer. That little shit of a murderer. Weaseling up to me for 2 years, making me fall in love with him. No, not him, the 'image' of him, that would be correct. And I fell for it, just like any normal teenager would, blindly fell for him. But I guess not blindly enough, as I refused to let him in on the cash. God knows where he even got that information. Honestly, it's not like I was an heiress to a million dollar fortune or anything. Why did I have to die such a stupid, pointless death?

So how it happened? He invited me over for _a romantic dinner_ at his apartment. That's where he brought up the topic of money. And an argument started, a heated one. He got angry, really angry. Violent even. We were standing next to his ground-to-ceiling window at that moment and he pushed me, unintentionally I could tell, but nonetheless. And I fell right through the window, plummeting down 16 floors towards the ground.

Bam.

That's my pathetic story.

And that brings us to now after I 'woke up'. Me, furious and confused, slouched over my dead body and watching in a soul form how the ambulance pulled in and tried to unsuccessfully bring me back to life.

I was dead. I could see that. As dead as dead gets. But I was still here and I didn't like it one bit. Even though I had seen souls for years, I didn't expect to still be here after I died. I mean, this can't be it, right?

Tearing my eyes off of the listless body, I ran. I didn't want to be anywhere near it, nor him. In fact, I never wanted to see his face again. I would wish him dead, but then he'd be with the rest of the souls, wondering, and that is unacceptable. That piece of filth deserves to go to hell, nothing less.

After running for what felt like hours, I finally came to a stop near a river at the edge of the town. It was peaceful here, not a soul in sight. And that's when the reality came crashing down. I felt the hot tears burn trails on my cheeks as sobs wrecked my body. I kneeled on the ground, hugged myself and cried my heart out.

I was dead.

 _I was dead._

 **I WAS DEAD.**

All gone, everything. There was nothing left.. I cried until no more tears came, until all I was left with was a dull emptiness.

I don't know how much time had passed. A day? A week? Month? I had just been sitting on the riverbank, staring blankly at the water when someone approached me. I didn't pay it much mind at first, since a lot of people passed through here, none being able to _see_. But when the said person had stood by me, quietly looking at me for a while, I turned to face him. It was a male, mid-thirties, sporting a black robe? A haori? He also carried a katana on his right hip.

"Hello there miss." The man smiled.

When the girl just kept blankly staring at him, giving him no response, he continued:

"My name is Himura Akio. Are you alright?"

That, however, got a response.

"Does it look like I'm alright? I'm dead. That's the furthest thing from 'alright'" The girl snapped angrily.

The man smiled at her sadly, knowing look in his eyes.

"Would you like me to help you?" The man asked after a momentary silence.

The girl looked at him quizzically, but said nothing. Akio sighed.

"I can help you cross over, I'd rather you not spend more time here. Frankly that would be for the best, it's not safe here for you."

"I.. I don't have to.. be stuck here forever?" The girl asked hesitantly, trying to ignore her triatorous feelings, which made her hope.

"No." Akio gave her a smile and before she could say another word, the back of his katana's hilt was against her forehead and she felt herself being consumed by something gentle, warm..

* * *

 _ **To be continued.**_


	2. Meet the 3rd seat

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

 **Shinigami** – soul reaper, death god.

 **-san suffix** – similar to Mr., Ms., Mrs., and so on. It also implies familiarity.

 **-chan suffix** – a form of san used to refer to children and female family members, close friends and lovers.

 **Taicho** – captain.

 **Fukutaicho** – lieutenant.

 **Shinōreijutsuin** – aka Shin'ō Academy, aka Spiritual Arts Academy, aka Shinigami Academy.

 **Zanpakuto** – main weapon of the Shinigami, usually a sword.

 **Kido** – a form of Shinigami combat based on advanced spells. These spells fall into two categories: Hadō for direct attacks, and Bakudō for battle support.

 **Hakuda** – a close-combat style of fighting, in which one is unarmed and uses only one's body.

 **Zanjutsu** – swordmanship, fighting style for the zanpakuto.

 **Hoho** – a defensive style of fighting which relates to footwork, it incorporates speed and agility.

 **Kanpai** – equivalent to 'cheers', said at a toast.

 **Sake** – rice wine.

* * *

 **Chapter Two**  
 _Meet the 3rd seat_

 _._

 ** _11 years later._**

 _It was a particularly peaceful day in Soul Society. Everyone was relaxing: enjoying the sun's sweet kisses on their skin, feeling the breeze as it gently swayed through the grass. The sound of cicadas was heard everywhere, reminding shinigami and normal souls alike, that summer was in full swing. It was such a wonderful day today, nice and quiet –_

"AMAI-SAN! GET YOUR LAZY ASS UP!"

 _Yes, everwhere except here apparently. Why can't that guy give it a rest for once. The guy I'm talking about is Tadashi Ryou, 6_ _th_ _seat of the division I'm a part of. 5_ _th_ _division._

"I KNOW YOU'RE AWAKE, STOP PRETENDING TO BE ASLEEP."

Shiho gave an exasperated sigh.

"Shut the hell up, christ, can't one take a well deserved nap once in a while or what?" She snapped.

"Well deserved? WELL DESERVED? You have been avoiding me for TWO days straight! Do your goddamn paperwork already," Ryou fumed, "or I'm going to report you to Aizen-taicho."

The girl sent him a hate-filled glare. "Fine. Now leave me the fuck alone." She snarled.

"I really wonder how Aizen-taicho puts up with your behavior.." He said under his breath as he walked away.

Shiho narrowed her eyes at the 6th seat's retreating back and let out a sigh once the guy was out of sight.

 _Aizen, huh.. It's not like this was the division I intended to join, their principles are too far off from what I believe in. Sacrifice, danger, pure love, humility, sweetness.. No, the only reason I joined was 'cause they offered me a numbered seat straight out of Shinōreijutsuin – the shinigami academy._

She laid down on the wooden floor, raised her zanpakuto and stared at it blankly.

 _Even my zanpakuto's powers, in my opinion, are a polar opposite of what this division believes in. I really do feel like I don't belong in this squad, but hey, I_ _ **was**_ _made 3_ _rd_ _seat just 6 years after school. Beat that._

She pushed herself up from the floor and walked inside, making her way to her room to finish the dull paperwork. Although she did have doubts about being in this division, she also knew where she stood. She was called a genius. Barely a year after landing her ass in Rukongai, she enrolled in the academy and passed it with flying colours in only one year. She was top of the class in both Kido and Hakuda, second best in Zanjutsu and fourth in Hoho. She was a very well-rounded graduate. She landed an 8th seat in the 5th division straight out of school, which was very, very impressive. And only 6 years after, she was promoted to 3rd.

Pushing the finished papers on the left side of the table, she leaned back on her chair and started twirling the pen between her fingers, deep in thought.

 _As comfortable I am keeping such a high number officer seat, I really should consider sending applications to different squads though. The longer I'm in here, the more restless I feel. I don't know what exactly, but something is really making my skin crawl around the captain.._

She put her elbow on the table and leaned her cheek on her palm, staring at nothing in particular and huffed.

 _There's just no way someone can be this.._ _ **Nice**_ _. His personality really creeps me out. And I've learned to trust my instincts. But yeah, try telling Hinamori that.._

Shiho rolled her eyes at the thought. The girl practically worshipped Aizen.

Since she was done with the godforsaken paperwork, she picked the pack up and headed towards the captain's quarters to deposit them on Aizen's table.

 _Might as well get a bath after this; a nice cold bath to cool down from the weather._

* * *

Shiho walked out of the washroom towards the changing area, wrapped in a big white towel. She stopped in front of the mirror and stared at her reflection: she really hadn't changed one bit. The same messy, short black hair, the same fair complexion and still only pushing a measly 160 cm in height. Even her eyes were the same deep purple colour. The only difference from now and back when she was a human were a few scars she had obtained over the years as a shinigami. She turned away from the mirror and picked up her shinigami attire from the chair she had thrown it on before.

After dressing she looked at her reflection once more. Her uniform wasn't exactly standard – she had tweaked it a lot to suit her better after all. She now wore a black, sleeveless one-piece that reached a little above her knees. It had a standard v-neck, which showed her cleavage slightly and the pants were just a bit baggy. Under the black one-piece, she wore a white undergarment, to give it a more 'shinigami uniform' look. She tied a pale turquoise sash around her waist to which she attached her zanpakuto. She looked good, the girl mused.

Finished in the washroom, Shiho walked out and took to wandering the streets of Seireitei. Turning the 4th corner, she heard a familiar voice.

"Shiho-chan! Oyy!"

"Rangiku-san, hey!" Shiho smiled at the woman. "What brings you here?"

"Well, actually, I just escaped from my taicho, hehe." Rangiku gave Shiho one of her innocent smiles. "Annnnd, since you're already here, let's go for drinks!"

She grabbed Shiho's hand and started dragging her towards their usual bar, where they hung out.

Matsumoto Rangiku was Shiho's closest friend, one that she felt she could actually trust, thus knowing her the best. There honestly weren't many. Through Rangiku she also became friends with Izuru Kira and she occasionally also spent time with Hitsugaya-taicho. Other than those three, she didn't really become close with anyone, least of all her own squad. Hinamori was nice and all, but she was so boring. Not to mention the fact, that she couldn't hold her liquor at all. Pity.

Before she knew it, she was already seated down in the bar, with a cup of sake in her hand.

"Yosh! Kanpai! May all the paperwork burn accidentally!" Matsumoto said in a sing-song voice.

Shiho laughed and raised her cup to her lips, downing the sake in one go. God she missed the taste of good sake.

* * *

 ** _2 hours later._**

"MATSUMOTOOOO.." A growl was heard from nearby.

Shiho raised her head slowly and tried to see through her blurry vision who the rude interrupter was. Her eyes widened by a fraction, when she saw Hitsugaya-taicho's sour face next to their table.

"Hehe, hey there Hitsugaya-kun." She gave him a wide smile. "I'm sorry, but Rangiku is out cold right now, I'm sure I'll follow suit soon enough, but until then, would you like to share a drink with me?"

The captain narrowed her eyes towards Shiho.

"It's Hitsugaya-TAICHO to you. And no, I do not want to drink. Now wake up my fukutaicho."

"I'm sorry, but I believe that is impossible," she gave him a sheepish smile "you see, with the amount of sake we downed today, I don't think she will be functioning until tomorrow, to say the least."

Hitsugaya's eye twitched in annoyance, then gave an exasperated sigh.

"Fine, just get her back to her chambers and tell her" he gave Shiho a glare "if I don't see her doing her work tomorrow, I will personally hunt her down."

Not wanting to instill his anger, she dutifully carried her friend back to 10th division. After tucking Rangiku in bed and placing a jug of water on her nightstand, she left for her own home. She knew she would be, not as much as Rangiku though, nursing a hangover the following morning, so the sooner she got to bed, the better.

Once back in her room, she made quick work of her clothes, discarding them on the ground and then plopped herself on the already rolled out futon. She never bothered to make her bed, it was too bothersome. Not even 10 minutes in, and Shiho was already blissfully dreaming, dreaming of a warm, golden glow and a beautiful, wide smile.

* * *

 _ **To be continued.**_


	3. Foreboding

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

 **Ryoka** – the term that's used to identify those who are not aligned with Soul Society.

 **Soutaicho** – captain-commander.

* * *

 **Chapter Three**  
 _Foreboding_

.

"Did you hear? Kuchiki-taicho and Abarai-fukutaicho captured Kuchiki Rukia."

"I heard she is going to be executed."

"For real? What did she do?"

"They say she transferred her shinigami powers to a human. A HUMAN."

"Kuchiki-taicho sure is heartless to not try to save his sister though."

"That's the _law_ , Tendou-san."

Shiho tuned out of the conversation between the shinigami and continued walking towards her division, deep in thought.

 _Executed? Even if her crimes were severe, we are talking about a member of the Kuchiki clan. Why isn't Kuchiki-taicho doing anything to stop this? No.. No, his behavior is expected – he is a very dutiful man, who follows the law at all times. But nonetheless.. For Central 46 to issue such a severe order. It's a little odd, and feels.. rushed? Hmm.._

Her train of thought was broken suddenly, however, when a loud crackling sound echoed throughout Seireitei skies and it quickly resulted in shouting shinigamis everywhere. Alarm bells followed suit shortly.

 _What the..?_

"Urgent alert! Urgent alert! Intruders in Seireitei! All squads get into position!  
Repeat!  
Urgent alert! Urgent alert! Intruders in Seireitei! All squads get into position!"

 _You've got to be kidding me. Is it the ryoka?_

Shiho broke into a run, making her way through the shinigami, who were panicking all over the place. Once she reached the 5th division quarters, she opened the door to the gathering hall. Most of the squad was already present.

"Hinamori-san! Where's the taicho? What's going on?" Shiho inquired her fukutaicho.

"Aizen-taicho is most likely still in the captain's meeting. He should be here shortly after. I'm sure you already heard on your way here: the ryoka managed to break through the barrier over Seireitei. According to the witnesses they were separated in the explosion, but their current whereabouts are unknown." Hinamori stated quietly.

Shiho frowned.

 _They must really be something for them to be able to bypass the barrier and to go undetected in a city full of trained shinigami.. That's quite a feat indeed._

"What is their objective?"

"We believe they wish to rescue Kuchiki Rukia.."

Shiho's eyes widened.

 _Well that's surprising. Why? Kuchiki-san was in the human world for barely 2 months. What would prompt them to go so far for her? They don't even know her that well.. Well, I suppose it doesn't matter all too much for us, we just need to capture them._

She addressed Hinamori: "Since Aizen-taicho is currently unaccessible, please give the order. Where are we to mobilize our forces Hinamori-fukutaichou?"

Hinamori looked slightly dumbstruck. She clearly wasn't used to giving out orders; actually her whole demeanor was that of a kind, shy, peace loving girl, which just made Shiho wonder how she even managed to become a shinigami.

"Uhm.. Right.. We are to relocate to the north part of Seireitei and help search for the ryoka. In case you encounter them, you are not to make contact alone. We do not know neither their abilities nor strength, so call and wait for backup. If possible try to restrain and capture them alive."

"Yes, Hinamori-fukutaicho!"

* * *

 ** _Roughly 5 hours later._**

Approximately 5 hours had passed since the ryoka entered Seireitei. The situation was getting more messy by the minute. There was still no update on the intruders' whereabouts, not even their visual appearance. Madarame Ikkaku, 3rd seat of the 11th division, Ayasegawa Yumichika, 5th seat of the same division and Jirōbō Ikkanzaka, 4th seat of the 7th division have already been defeated. And that's not including the non-seated officers. Practically the whole 11th division has been annihilated. After taking out the officers, however, there have been no further reports on the ryoka's activities what-so-ever.

To say that Shiho was annoyed would be an understatement. With the taicho still nowhere in sight, she had to put up with a nervous, angsty Hinamori and a panicking squad. That was not amusing in the least.

 _What is everyone doing? It's not as if the ryoka disappeared off the face of the planet. Fuck. This makes me wish I was a part of 11_ _th_ _division - at least I could do what ever the fuck I wanted and search for the intruders. Perhaps even encounter one and get to fight someone competent for once._

Shiho ran her fingers through her ruffled hair in frustration and let out an irate sigh.

"Hinamori-fukutaicho! Amai-san!"

Shiho turned to the man, waiting for him to speak.

"Report." Hinamori said.

"Reporting. One of the ryoka has defeated Abarai-fukutaicho. The ryoka whereabouts remain unknown. That is all."

Hinamori clapped her hands over her mouth. "Abarai-kun.. Is he alright?"

"He will live. Kuchiki-taicho threw him into prison for disobeying orders, however."

"Abarai-kun.. Why must this all happen.. Aizen-taicho.." Hinamori choked out.

* * *

 ** _Next morning._**

When Shiho woke up the following morning, she knew straight away, that something was amiss. She couldn't place exactly why she felt that way, but usually her gut feeling was spot on. She stretched herself, feeling sore all over her body after sleeping in an awkward position and yawned. She noted, that it was awfully quiet in Seireitei in comparison to the hectic day of the day before. She frowned - that was really suspicious. She half ran to the 5th division's grounds, noting that if possible, it was even more quieter there. She hesitantly opened the door to the main gathering hall. The whole room was a gloom-ville. The aura coming off of the members was suffocatingly dark and their faces were really grim, serious. Hushed whispers were heard throughout the room as Shiho walked through briskly, making her way towards a certain blond haired woman, who under normal circumstances would not be here.

"Rangiku-san. What happened?" Shiho asked the woman seriously. The look on her face did not bode well.

"Aizen-taicho.." she paused, "Aizen-taicho was found dead today morning."

"..What?"

"We believe he was murdered. Unohana-taicho is performing an autopsy as we speak to find out further details of his death." She looked at Shiho darkly, "I must also tell you.. The one to discover the dead body.. Was Hinamori-fukutaicho."

Shiho inhaled sharply. After a brief silence, she asked:

"Where is Hinamori-san?"

Rangiku cast her eyes downward.

"I don't know what she has heard or from whom, but when she found.. him, she wasn't exactly in her right mind. She tried to attack Ichimaru-taicho. Frankly, he seemed to be goading her into it, as far as I saw, but Kira-kun stopped her. They both lost it and nearly got serious in inflicting damage when my taicho intervened and stopped them. They were both thrown in prison for the time being."

Shiho sighed heavily and sat down with her shoulders slumped.

"This is bad.. Any chance, that the ryoka are involved in this?"

"We don't know yet. Soutaicho isn't taking any chances as of now though. He has issued wartime orders. We are to carry zanpakutos at all times now and our priority isn't capturing them anymore." She said sadly.

The 3rd seat nodded at her friend.

"Thank you for bringing the news Rangiku-san."

"Not at all. I've got to be going now though. Take care and.. stay safe alright? The 5th division really can't lose any more people. See you, Shiho-chan."

* * *

 ** _Over half a day later._**

She raised her head slightly when she heard a knock on the door.

"Enter."

The door slid open as a messanger stepped in.

"I'm here to report, that one of the ryoka has been captured by Kyoraku-taicho and.. that Kenpachi-taicho and Kurotsuchi-taicho have been defeated."

Shiho groaned at the news.

"Anything else..?"

"…"

"Yes?"

"..Earlier, Hinamori-fukutaicho, Izuru-fukutaicho and Abarai-fukutaicho all escaped from their cells. Furthermore, Hitsugaya-taicho and Ichimaru-taicho engaged in a battle in West-Seireitei. The reason remains unclear. Hinamori-fukutaicho was also found unconcious at the site by Matsumoto-fukutaicho. She is currently being looked after in the 4th division.

As for Izuru-fukutaicho, he was last seen leaving with Ichimaru-taicho, after Matsumoto-fukutaicho interrupted their fight. Abarai-fukutaicho's whereabouts remain unknown."

Shiho took a slightly shaky breath.

"..Is that all?"

"Yes, Amai-san."

"Then leave."

The man left, closing the sliding door behind him.

She threw herself over the papers on the table, half laying on it with her upper body.

"What are you doing, Hinamori-san.."

 _This whole situation is just so messy. Ryoka invasion. Central 46 and Kuchiki-san's execution. Aizen-taicho's murder. The odd actions of Hinamori and also, Hitsugaya-taicho attacking a fellow captain? What is going on here.. Just one thing after another and so suddenly. As far as I know, Soul Society has had a nearly century long peace time and now this?_

She furrowed her brows, thinking.

 _So much.. Too much? Ryoka. Central 46. Execution. Murder. Suspicion. Central 46? What is Central 46 doing? Throughout this whole commotion, besides only focusing on Kuchiki-san, what has it done? Why is there no orders coming in? ..Ignoring deliberately? A diversion..? There's too much happening and we have nothing to focus on? What are we missing? Something isn't right. Something else is bubbling under all this. I have a really bad feeling about all this._

Shiho banged her forehead loudly against the table.

 _This isn't getting me anywhere._ _I need to clear my mind, perhaps I'll piece this together once I've gotten some undisturbed sleep.._

She rubbed her temples and sighed, then got up from behind the table and in a few strides she was next to the sofa on the other end of the room. Shiho let her body fall face-first on it, closing her eyes tiredly and willing her mind to empty. Ever so slowly her mind drifted and she finally fell asleep, this time dreaming of pitch black and an eerie mask.

* * *

 _ **To be continued.**_


	4. Piece of a puzzle

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

 **Shunpo** – aka flash steps, the greatest expression of the Hohō technique.

 **Garganta** – a spiritual pathway connecting Hueco Mundo to other worlds.

 **Reiatsu** – the physical force/pressure that a person's reiryoku creates when released.

 **Reiryoku** – a power aligned with the spiritual sensitivity and willpower of the user.

* * *

 **Chapter Four**  
 _Piece of a puzzle_

.

Shiho woke with a start. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she processed the revalation she had on the brink of consciousness. She took a few breaths to calm and compose herself, then quickly got up, and walked out of the room into the gathering hall in hurried steps. Once there, she grabbed the first subordinate by their sleeve.

"What time is it? Answer quick."

The man look just a little bit frightened.

"Uh, it is nearly midday Amai-san."

"How long till Kuchiki Rukia's execution?"

"Approximately 2 hours mam." The man answered.

"Walk with me." She begun making her way out of the 5th division grounds, not slowing down in the slightest. "Fill me in what has happened while I was out, make it short and straight to the point."

"Yes uhm.. The 11th division seems to be aiding the ryoka. Zaraki-taicho, Madarame Ikkaku and Ayasegawa Yumichika released the 3 ryoka from prison and afterwards engaged Tosen-taicho, Iba Tetsuzaemon and Hisagi-fukutaicho in a fight to buy time for the ryoka to escape. Also, a report just came in, that Abarai-fukutaicho seems to be revolting as well, as he challenged his own taicho to a match. That's all, I believe."

"Okay, thank you. You may return to the squad. I have something I want to confirm., so I'll be out for a while."

"Yes, Amai-san."

When the shinigami was out of sight, she fell into a run.

 _How did I miss this? How did I miss the notion, that I had always felt off around Aizen-taicho. There was something there, that I couldn't place. It's like it was right in front of me, yet I was unable to grasp it. Now.. Now, is he dead? Is he actually, really dead? Unohana-taicho clearly stated, that the body was legitimate, but is it possible for even her to make a mistake? That is quite debatable.. But the gnawing suspicion won't go away, that there's something really,big and horrible going on. There's no way I can stop the execution, but I have a really bad feeling, that if it should commence, something irreversable will happen._

Shiho picked up her pace, nearing her destination – Central 46.

 _If I'm wrong about this, it will probably end really badly for me, but I must make sure._

She stopped at the gate, which leads to Central 46, her guard up and her suspicion gaining more ground as she walked forward.

 _The gate is open. There are remnants of reiatsu all over this place – Hitsugaya-taicho, Rangiku-san.. Kira-kun? And.. Hinamori-san….?_

When she got closer to the main door, she felt ice in her veins.

 _The alarms are off. The emergency defence has been cut down._

Shiho sprinted inside, hesitation gone, but what awaited her inside rooted her to the ground the moment her eyes recognized, what she was seeing. The whole front was covered in blood and in the midst of the pool of blood lay a body. Shiho's eyes widened when she recognized who it was.

"H-Hinamori-san.."

She ran to her as fast as her shunpo would allow, knelt down and tried to feel her pulse.

 _It's there, albeit barely.. She has a huge puncture wound through her ribcage. If she doesn't get medical attention soon, she will not make it._

Noting the slowly melting ice around Hinamori's wounds, her dread grew once again.

"Ah.. Amai-san. Can't say I'm surprised to see you here."

Shiho raised her head towards the direction of the oh so familiar voice, nausea filling her gut.

"Aizen-taicho.."

The ex-taicho looked at her briefly, smile playing on his face, all the while wiping his zanpakuto clean of blood.

"You always were smart. Very intuitive and definitely stronger than you let on. You would've made an excellent subordinate, if only you weren't so uncontrollable. Pity."

She narrowed her eyes at the man. When he moved to the side a few steps, she noticed another pool of blood –

"Hitsugaya-kun!"

"Oh, you saw? He was getting out of hand so I had to restrain him a little."

 _No.. no no no. I need to help him, he is oozing blood so much, if nothing is done he will –_

"Aizen-taicho. No, we probably shouldn't call you captain any longer.." A familiar, female voice echoed from the entrance. "You're just Aizen Souske, the triator." She looked sideways, "Same goes for you, Ichimaru Gin."

"Unohana-taicho.." Shiho breahted softly, also noting Isane-fukutaicho behind her.

Aizen smiled at the new guests. "Hello, Unohana-taicho. I knew you'd show up by now. Did you immediately figure out, that I would be here?"

Unohana-taicho looked at the traitor, barely showing a hint of anger in her eyes, before answering.

"Central 46 is the only place within Seireitei, that is absolutely off limits. This is the only place to hide in the Seireitei for someone who's gone so far as to fake his own death with such an elaborate corpse doll."

"Close. Your insight is good, but you made two mistakes." Aizen said, clearly pleased. "First of all, I didn't come here to hide. And second," he raised the same corpse, which was found a mere day ago, menacing smile playing on his lips. "This is not a corpse doll."

There was quite a few things Shiho had seen during her time in Soul Society and Unohana Retsu shocked was definitely not one of them.

"Wh-When did he.." Isane-fukutaicho stuttered.

"When?" Aizen asked rhetorically. "I've been holding it all this time. But.. I just wasn't letting you see it until now."

Unohana inhaled sharply, realization dawning on her.

"Shatter, Kyokasuigetsu." Aizen said, as the illusion became undone, revealing his zanpakuto. "This is my zanpakuto, Kyokasuigetsu. It's ability is perfect hypnosis."

"..I see," Unohana said "so the act you put on, showing everyone the abilities you before claimed to have, was actually the hypnosis ritual."

"Correct." He said, smug look on his face. "And all I need to do, to activate it, is show my enemies the release of Kyokasuigetsu. Whoever lays eyes on it, even once, will be hypnotized into doing my bidding whenever I release my Kyokasuigetsu."

Unohana's eyes widened by a fraction.

"It seems you figured it out. Yes.. Whoever lays their **eyes** on it falls under my spell. Which means, that those who can't see, will not be affected. In other words, Tosen Kaname was my subordinate from the beginning."

Suddenly Gin pulled out a spell and begun releasing it over himself and Aizen.

"Before I go," Aizen continued, "I'd like to commend you for sensing something suspicious about my dead body, Unohana-taicho. You had the chance to examine my body the longest, but you were still under perfect hypnosis." He turned his gaze to Shiho, "And you Amai Shiho, I also commend your intuition and observing skills. You were the only one to sense, that something was suspicious about my act. Goodbye. I doubt I will ever see any of you again." He said with a conceited smile, as he was whisked away by the spell.

* * *

After Aizen's departure, Unohana-taicho and her fukutaicho got to work. Unohana hastily began treating the injured, specifically Hinamori and Hitsugaya. While Unohana was busy healing, Isane used Kido to pinpoint Aizen's location - no surprise there, he was at the Sōkyoku Hill. Isane-fukutaicho then commenced casting another Kido spell, contacting all of the shinigami and also the ryoka, to inform everyone of Aizen's, Gin's and Kaname's betrayal, as well as to alert the populace of their location.

"Amai-san, are you alright?" Isane asked her, after she finished the transmission.

Shiho got up, not looking at the other two women.

"I.. I'm fine." She said, as she left for the exit without looking back not once.

"Amai-"

"Isane. Leave her be."

"..Yes taicho."

Shiho was angry, no, scratch that, she was furious, pissed, ready to skewer some unlucky bastard as she sprinted towards Sokyoku.

 _How.. How DARE he. He betrayed his whole division, nearly killed Hinamori and Hitsugaya and then he stands there, laughing in my face how he's HAPPY, that I figured him out? Is he mocking me or something? FUCK. I couldn't do a god damn thing. If I had just been there earlier, perhaps some of the damage he inflicted those two I could've lessened.._

Shiho bit the inside of her cheek as she ran, feeling the metallic taste in her mouth as warm blood trickled on her tongue.

 _FUCK YOU Aizen. You better hope you're already dead by the time I reach that blasted hill or I will make sure your death will be FAR from painless._

Just as she reached the top of the hill, however, a garganta opened up and three pillars of light connected with the ground. Shiho strained her eyes and noticed, that the light pillars had enveloped all three traitors, pulling them out of Soul Society. She saw red.

"Oh no you DON'T." She snarled, and was about to lunge at Aizen when –

"Stop!" Soutaicho's voice rumbled. "That light is called 'Negacion'. The menos use it to help save their fellow hollows. Once enveloped by that light, it is impossible for those within and without to interact. It's an isolated world. All who have fought menos know.. The moment that light fell on Aizen Souske, it became impossible to reach him."

Komamura-taicho punched the ground, enraged. "Tosen! Come down here Tosen! I don't understand! Why did you become a shinigami?! Wasn't it for your friend, who passed away?! Wasn't it to carry out your justice?!" He shouted at his one-time friend, "Where has your sense of justice gone?!"

"I told you Komamura," Kaname responded, "the only thing I can see with my eyes is the least bloody path. Justice is always there. The path I follow is justice!"

"Tosen.."

Ukitake-taicho stepped forward and addressed Aizen. "You've joined with the menos.. What for?!"

Aizen looked down on Ukitake and answered coldly. "To reach higher."

"Have you fallen so much, Aizen?"

"You are too arrogant, Ukitake." He smiled at the man. "No one stood at the top from the beginning. Neither you, nor me, nor the gods. But that unbearable vacancy of heaven's throne ends now. From now on.. I will stand atop the heavens." He declared arrogantly. "Goodbye, shinigamis."

The garganta closed just as he finished saying his 'byes', leaving everyone down below speechless.

* * *

 ** _4 days later._**

 _Splash._

The sense of normalcy was slowly beginning to return to Soul Society. During the week the prior events took place, a lot was destroyed – the buildings, walls, Central 46, the sokyoku and even parts of Rukongai, so the shinigami had their hands full with rebuilding and relocating people who had nowhere to live. There ended up being no casualties thankfully and the injured were already getting released, one by one. The ryoka were now proclaimed heroes for their role in stopping an injustice from taking place. Something akin to peace begun to settle, at least for the time being.

 _Splash._

Shiho threw another pebble into the shallow river, shoulders slumped dejectedly. She had been sitting on the riverbank on the outskirts of Rukongai for several hours already, feeling sorry for herself and taking out her anger on the poor pebbles which she kept drowning one after another.

"Shiho-chan.."

Shiho looked around, only to find Rangiku standing right behind her.

"Rangiku-san.. What are you doing here?"

The woman gave Shiho a small smile and sat next to her.

"Actually, I came to check up on you. Haven't really seen you around the past days. How are you holding up?"

"I'm alr-"

"Don't lie to me." Rangiku interrupted her, the look on her face serious."

Shiho sighed and cast her eyes downward.

"I don't know. It's.. hard. Now that the division is without a captain and Hinamori is in a coma, leading the squad falls on my shoulders. It's a lot of work, work I'd rather not do, albeit I'm pretty good at it."

"That's not what I meant Shiho-chan."

"…"

"Shiho-chan?"

"I.. I couldn't do anything. Even when I got there, I was just frozen to the spot. With Hinamori and Hitsugaya on the ground, both losing blood fast.. All I could do is stare. I knew, that if I had attacked, Aizen wouldn't have hesitated to strike me down as well, but this just makes me feel so.. Utterly powerless. And maybe if I had figured him out sooner, this all could've been prevented." Shiho said sadly, suddenly feeling very vulnerable.

"Shiho-chan, this isn't your fault. He had all of us under his spell, even the oldest and wisest were fooled like mere kids. No one is blaming you, nor did they expect you to to see through him. I think you are amazing that you did at all, even though a little late. And I'm sure Hinamori and Toushiro would say the same thing, so don't beat yourself up." The older woman said as she hugged Shiho.

"Now let's get out of here, you've stayed here long enough and without you around, I Have no one to drink with." Rangiku winked at the girl.

* * *

 ** _A month and a half later._**

"Wait up, Hitsugaya-kun! I said wait!" Shiho yelled as she ran after the boy-captain.

"For the last time Amai-san," he said as he turned to face the girl in annoyance, "it's Hitsugaya-TAICHO."

"Yes yes, that. Anyway," she continued, dismissing his previous sentence completely,"I heard you put together a team to subdue the rising arrancar problem." She said excitedly. "And I want in. Don't say no. I already heard you let Ikkaku and Yumicika in. You have no reason to deny me." Shiho gave the boy a wry smile.

If Hitsugaya was annoyed before.. Well now his eye was twitching.

"And who will look after the 5th division in your absence?"

"You are pulling at straws taicho-chan. I'm a genius, remember? Just as you, I will continue doing my paperwork diligently in the human world. Also, Ukitake-taicho and Kyoraku-taicho have both offered to lessen my load till a new captain can be appointed."

"..Fine." Hitsugaya sighed as he gave in. "We will depart at night. Don't be late."

Shiho grinned victoriously.

 _This will be a load of fun. I Haven't been in the human world for a long time. Wonder what has changed? Not to mention I'll get to fight some strong opponents._

A murderous glint passed through her eyes.

 _And if I'm lucky, maybe I'll even get to say 'hi' to dear Aizen._

* * *

 _ **To be continued.**_


	5. New students

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

Since I forgot to mention it before, Shiho's last name Amai means sweet. So now you know.

* * *

 **Chapter Five**  
 _New students_

.

Shiho cringed.

 _Oh this is fair alright. While they get to lounge about, go where they please and do what they want,_ _ **I**_ _have to attend school and babysit the Carrot Top._ _ **And**_ _, to hell with this teacher, making me stand in front of the class while I have all eyes on me, as if I was some alien life form. I really dislike being in the center of attention. So awkward. UGH. I'll make them pay for this. You hear me Hitsugaya?! You'll get a piece of me too, damn shrimp._

 *****  
Flashback.**

"Besides Kuchiki-san, one of us should also attend Karakura High to keep an eye on Kurosaki Ichigo."

Hitsugaya looked around and assessed his team.

Well there's no way he could send Renji or Ikkaku, they stand out too much.  
Matsumoto.. Definate no.  
Yumichika will most likely spend his time rather looking in the mirror than looking at Kurosaki.

Hitsugaya looked at Shiho.

"I'm sending you Amai-san. You are the only one who can look the part and blend in properly.  
I'm counting on you."

 **End flashback  
*****

"Good news class! Today we have, not one, but TWO transfer students!" The teacher declared excitedly. "Although, as you can see, one of them is a yankee so he didn't show up. Oh well, bet he's in good health." She said merrily. After a brief pause, she glanced at Shiho.

"Now then, go on, introduce yourself!"

Shiho tried to refrain from running her fingers through her hair in frustration, opting to sigh instead.

"Hello. My name is Amai Shiho. Nice to meet you all." She bowed slightly.

"Woah! She's like super cute!" Murmurs were heard throughout the classroom.

 _Yeah. Cute until I open my mouth. Then you'll be avoiding me like the plague._

"Yosh! As for your seat.. Ah, there's one in the back row, next to the window. If you will?"

Shiho walked between the rows, reaching her assigned seat. She then proceeded to place her school bag in it's assigned slot and sat down on the creaking, uncomfortable chair, deliberately avoiding the glances of others, namely Ichigo and his gang of misfits. She knew they would be questioning her presence here, but at least it was going to wait – almost as soon as she had sat down, Ichigo's badge begun howling, informing him of a hollow nearby.

She stared out of the window, paying the teacher little attention as she watched the Carrot Top and his two friends, some orange haired bimbo and a dark-sinned skyscraper(she didn't remember their names) run out of the school entrance. She continued staring blankly, long after they were out of sight.

Shiho didn't like school. Simple as that. Oh she was good at the studies, she always had been. Having a good memory and a quick wit made classes a breeze for her, so that wasn't the reason she didn't like it. No, she didn't like being surrounded by so many people. She didn't like people. Period. Well, not like they liked her generally. And not much has changed after she died. Her division didn't think much of her either. She was crude, loud and always said what she thought, even if it meant offending someone. That doesn't really land you high on the friends' chart. There were a few exceptions though, like Rangiku. She also found that she got along with the 11th division fairly well, but that sums it up all in all.

Suddenly the bell rang, notifying the students and teachers alike that the first period had ended and it was time for a break.

 _Well then, better make myself scarce before they start surrounding me._

* * *

 _Can't believe it's barely lunch break. I already forgot how long a school day is. This is so utterly boring._

She took another bite out of the convenience store sandwich she brought along with her and then shoved it back in the school bag, frowning.

 _I should've bought the onigiri instead._

Shiho jumped down from the tree she had been sitting in, making a light thud as her feet hit the ground. She slowly made her way back to the classroom, not wanting to be late as it would just get her unwanted attention.

"Hey, you." A voice came from a short distance.

Shiho looked up to find a head full of orange and brown eyes way too close to her face. She raised her brow.

"Yes, Ichigo?"

"Who are you? Why are you in my school?"

"Ah, right. I wasn't there when Rukia beat your ass up to get the cowardice out of you. I'm here on Hitsugaya's orders, if you got a complaint, take it to him. I didn't choose to go to school for a second time, once was enough. And since you weren't paying attention in the morning, my name is Shiho."

Ichigo just looked at her dumbly as she shuffled past him and entered the classroom, taking no time to sit down at the back of the room.

"Listen up, everyone!" The teacher said loudly, as she entered the class. "The second transfer student I mentioned this morning is here. I'll introduce him. Come in!"

A quite tall guy with shoulder-length blond hair and a wide grin entered the room.

"Your name, please." The teacher continued.

The guy started explaining his name leisurely.

"The 'hei' in lewd, plus the 'ko' in Onono Imoko. The 'shin' in genuine worker, plus the 'ko' in spicy cod roe… I'm Hirako Shinji. Pleased to meet ya." He bowed, smile still playing on his lips.

"Hey, Hirako-kun! It's reversed! Reversed!" The teacher laughed.

"Pretty good, huh? Doing things in reverse is my speciality."

"Oh, I see." The teacher said, laughter in her voice. "Let's find you a seat."

"Teacher! Put me next to a really cute girl!"

 _Shiho tuned out the noise in the class. Weird guy. Speaks funny too. Well, at least now the attention will be off me, he is strange enough to be interesting for the others._

"All right, your seat will be next to him."

"Okay, okay!" The guy said cheerfully.

Shiho heard the chair across her table being pulled out as the new guy sat next to Ichigo. While they made small talk, Shiho stared at Hirako.

 _He.. looks familiar? Although I've never met the guy, that I'm sure of. Strange feeling._

"Please stop looking at me so intently pretty lady, or I'll get shy ya know." Hirako said mock embarrassment , looking at Shiho.

That effectively pulled Shiho out of her reverie, her cheeks tinted. She had been caught staring and she couldn't really offer an excuse that wouldn't sound lame, so she just went with 'ignore the guy by purposely staring out of the window in hopes he leaves you alone'. Sadly that plan didn't work as well as it could've.

"I'm Hirako Shinji, nice to meet ya. And you are..?" Hirako asked, still looking at her with a wide smile on his face.

"..Amai Shiho, a pleasure." She replied hesitantly.

"What a 'sweet' name ya got." He commented, while wriggling his brows.

"Says the guy with 'lewd' in his name." Shiho said, amused.

Hirako gave a laugh.

"Yeah, ya got that right. Let's be friends, 'kay Shi-chan?"

"Mhm.." She answered vaguely.

"Alright class, quiet down and pay attention!" The teacher's voice echoed throughout the classroom.

Shiho zoned out once more, blankly staring out of the window, missing the side-glance Hirako gave her. It wasn't long until her thoughts were interrupted again as a slight rustling noise hit her table. Her eyes caught glimpse of a small wrapped up piece of paper in the middle of her open textbook. She picked it up curiously and flattened it out.

'Your blush was adorable.' There was also a small grinning face drawn on the bottom.

Her eyes narrowed and the corner of her mouth twitched slightly as she stared at the offending piece of paper.

 _You couldn't have let it slide, could you?_

She picked up an eraser from the corner of her table and swiftly flicked it against his head. Hard. Instantly a muffled 'ouch' was heard, making Shiho smirk victoriously. Hirako rubbed his head while pouting and mumbled something about violent women, which just made Shiho's grin widen.

The rest of the class passed by eventless, with Shiho either staring outside or at the clock near the classroom door, waiting for the seconds to tick by so she could be out of here. The weather wasn't looking good though – it was turning rather somber with all the dark clouds gathering and not long after a quiet drizzle was heard, as the raindrops pattered on the windows. And she didn't have an umbrella. Although that was the least of her worries, honestly.

 _It seems I won't be able to get by, by sleeping in a tree tonight. Where should I crash today? Perhaps I can find an abandoned building or a construction site or something, as long as I have a roof over my head it doesn't matter where I sleep, I suppose._

She sighed.

 **Ding-ding-dong.**

The bell signaled the end of the school day. Finally. Shiho got up and started to pack her things in her bag hastily.

"See ya tomorrow Shi-chan!" Hirako said cheerfully, the already signature wide grin plastered on his face.

"Mhm.. See you, Hirako-kun." She answered absentmindedly.

She packed up the last of her things and once done with that, she made her way out of the school, into the cold, pouring rain.

* * *

 ** _To be continued._**

.

.

.

 _**Raton Fou**_ **/** Thank you very much for your review! I'm very happy you like the fic so far. To be honest, I wasn't sure how it was going as I didn't feel very sure in writing it, so I'm really happy to get some feedback. As for my OC being Mary Sue'ish, I honestly didn't realize it was going there. I'm hoping I don't create her as such, although I don't have many plans in changing her character which I've though out so far. I will, however, keep in mind what you said.

As for her remembering her past life, I think that's a very plausible turn of events, since I've seen some ghosts(ex. Shibata Yuichi, the parakeet) and also hollows (ex. Shrieker) remember their past. It was my assumption, that the ones who don't in Soul Society, are either born there or were too young when they were sent there.

Again, thank you very much for the review, it honestly made me happy!


	6. Questions

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

 **Kekkai** – barrier.

 **Gigai** – an artificial body which allows Shinigami to remain in the Human World and interact with Humans.

 **Hime** – a princess.

 **Tora** – a tiger.

 **Saru** – a monkey.

* * *

 **Chapter Six**  
 _Questions_

.

It was pitch black, no matter where she looked. There wasn't even one speck of light in this darkness that surrounded her. But she wasn't afraid of it - for some reason she found this darkness soothing, reassuring, so she let it carry her. But suddenly there was a change in the space she was floating in. A small flicker of gold sparked alive a short distance ahead. Shiho tried to catch it, yet it kept escaping through her fingers no matter how much she tried, making her frustrated. When she finally managed to catch it in the palm of her hand, it disappeared into nothingness, leaving only a faint scent of oranges behind.

/ / /

Shiho woke up groggily, blinking a few times to unblur her vision. She stared at the white, unrefined concrete ceiling above her and listened to the faint sounds of rain hitting pavement 10 stories below. It took her a while, but she had managed to find a nearly finished, yet not occupied apartment complex at the edge of Karakura last evening, where she could spend some nights unnoticed. It wasn't the most comfortable, but it was dry and as long as she cast a Kekkai spell to keep warm, she wasn't cold either.

She stretched her arms out and slowly got up, rubbing her eyes as she did. She grabbed her gigai from the floor, fusing with it in a swift motion. It was still too early to go anywhere, barely 5am, but the dream she had seen had woken her up completely, so even if she tried, she wouldn't be able to catch more sleep.

Since she had so much time to spare until the godforsaken classes started, she decided to go for a jog. The area she was currently residing in consisted mostly of creepy buildings and abandoned warehouses, so she wasn't likely going to be disturbed and she liked that thought. She pulled on a raincoat and exited the building. She begun with a slow pace, picking it up, as she ran on. Buildings passed in a blur as she continued sprinting and she enjoyed it throughoutly. She hadn't had such a peaceful jog in ages, since Seireitei was always packed with shinigamis, regardless of time. She turned another corner, intending to make a round trip and head back 'home' when her body collided with another and she stumbled a few steps back, landing her ass on the wet pavement, chest heaving.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I-" She begun explaining, raising her head to catch a glimpse of gold in her vision. It was the other transfer student, Hirako Shinji. "..Was going." She finished, staring wide-eyed at the man in front of her.

" 'is alright." He replied, an amused twinkle in his eyes. "G'morning Shi-chan. Didn't know ya lived around here." He gave her his hand to help her get up.

Shiho hesitated for a brief second before grabbing his hand, only to stumble in mid process and be pulled straight into his arms. Her eyes widened as a strong scent of oranges hit her nostrils and she quickly pulled away from him, opting to stand in a safe distance.

"Uhm, yeah. I just moved in nearby, but it's merely temporary." She replied, trying to ignore what had just transpired. "Anyway, as pleasant as this meeting was, I need to go. I have to run back home or I'll end up being late for school."

"That's too bad." He said with a grin. "Well, see ya at school Shi-chan~"

"Mhm."

She then turned around, and begun racing back towards the apartment complex she had left her belongings, her mind reeling.

 _He smelled like oranges. Why did he have to smell like oranges? Stupid, stupid dream. Making me unnecessarily flustered and planting foolish thoughts in my head. Out. Out with you. This train of thought is over._

* * *

Shiho sat down behind her table and begun taking her textbooks out. She still managed to get to school a little early, despite her odd morning, and not many people had arrived yet. Surprisingly the Carrot Top was present already though. She gave him a once over, noting that his brows were furrowed and eyes slightly narrowed.

 _Hm? Did something happen? He seems rather annoyed, angry._

Shiho huffed.

 _Or maybe it's just teenage boys' things. Shouldn't read too much into it, even though I'm here to keep an eye on him._

"Good morning, Kurosaki-kun!" A bright voice was heard just after the door to the classroom opened.

Shiho lazily dragged her gaze over to the woman, Inoue Orihime. Her eye twitched, when she saw who else came in.

"Mornin', Ichigo-kun!" Hirako happily waved.

 _Hm? Carrot Top's aura got more annoyed. Interesting reaction Ichigo._

"Morning, um.. Let's see... Hirako-kun!" Orihime greeted the guy next to her.

"Yes! You remembered my name!" Suddenly his hands were around the woman, hugging her. "Good mornin', Orihime-chan!"

Shiho stopped paying attention to Hirako's flir- antics and concentrated on Ichigo instead. The guy seemed to be itching for a fight with Hirako. And just as the thought had passed through her mind, Ichigo got up and begun dragging the surprised blondie by his shirt out of the classroom for a 'talk'.

A mischievous smile appeared on Shiho's face.

 _Ohhoo. Interesting. Better make sure I don't miss a thing._

She quickly followed, making sure the ones she intended to eavesdrop on, wouldn't notice her around. When they made it outside, near the courtyard and Ichigo slammed Hirako against the metal railing, Shiho stopped and leaned against the wall behind her, sharpening her ears.

"Ow! That hurts!" Hirako looked at Ichigo accusingly. "You don't have to get so mad! Orihime is not your girlfriend, right?"

Shiho wanted to facepalm.

 _He's acting dumb on purpose. And annoying. Ichigo is so gonna snap._

"There's no way a hottie like that would be your girlfriend, right?" Hirako continued on.

"That's not it! You be sure to apologize to Inoue later!" Ichigo said, slightly flustered. "You should know better!"

Hirako just stared at the Carrot Top, his face apathetic. "You've no right to talk to me like that." He put his tongue out mockingly.

"Hirako, why the hell are you still coming to school?" Ichigo demanded.

"Don't act stupid! It's the duty of a student to go to school, right?"

"The reason you came to this school was to recruit me into your group, right?!" Ichigo stated, raising his voice. "If that's the case, you have no reason to be here!"

Hirako's smile faded as his eyes narrowed. "And why's that? Surely you don't think I've given up just because of what happened yesterday, do ya?" His voice grew colder. "I don't give up so easily. I'm gonna follow you around 'til I get a yes."

Ichigo looked startled.

"Besides, it's too late. Visoreds can't become normal again once the symptoms appear." He continued seriously. "No matter what you think, you're on our side now."

Ichigo just stared at him in utter shock.

Hirako sighed. "Orihime-chan, too. The big one, too. And glasses. You believe them all to be friends, don't you?" he closed his eyes briefly, before continuing. "Well, you're wrong. They're only friends for the time being. If you keep being a shinigami, at some point you will lose your sanity and be swallowed up by the hollow inside. And when that happens, it's all over. Your power will destroy everything. Your friends, as well as the future, will all be swallowed and smashed to pieces."

A wicked smile appeared on Hirako's face. "Don't tell me you haven't already noticed? The fact that the hollow inside you… is already so powerful you can't control it. Come with me, Ichigo. I will show you how to maintain your sanity."

 **Ding-ding-dong.**

The bell signaled the start of class. Hirako stood up, smoothed out the wrinkles on his uniform and begun making his way back to class, leaving a shell-shocked and pained Ichigo behind.

When Shiho saw Hirako stand up, she silently backed away from the wall and quickly returned to class to act as if nothing happened. She had gotten a lot of unusual information out of that, which needed processing. She also needed to sort out, what and if she should tell Hitsugaya.

 _Well I didn't expect this. This is quite a lot to take in and frankly I'm not familiar with everything that Hirako said. And it's not like I can go and ask him. Clearly he isn't your average, ahem, 'student'. What did he call himself again.. Ah, Visored. I've never heard of the term._

Shiho furrowed her brows, tapping on her table gently with her fingers.

 _Damn you, piquing my curiosity. So then.. How should I proceed with this? Asking the Carrot Top most likely won't produce any results - I'm not particularly close with the guy and asking the wrong things may end up being counterproductive. Questioning Hirako directly is also out of the question._

Shiho sighed and laid her head on the table. She didn't like unsolved mysteries. They would just haunt her till the end of time, or rather, until she had enough and went and solved them.

The chair across was pulled out, letting Shiho know of Hirako's presence. She raised her head, scanning the classroom and she noticed that Ichigo did in fact not return. Most likely chose to skip class. She also noted, that Ichigo's friends were wearing concerned expression and giving each other looks.

 _He should've been a little less obvious. This is how you get people worrying about you unnecessarily._

"Shi-chan, you'll get wrinkles if ya keep frowning so much."

Shiho looked up towards the voice and came nearly face to face with Hirako, who was leaning on his cheek with his elbow on her table. With a wide grin on his face. And once more the scent of oranges faintly surrounded her.

 _God he smells good.. Wait no. No, that's not what I should be thinking about._

Shiho rolled her eyes and looked away with a huff, intending to ignore his bait for conversation. If possible, that made his already wide smile stretch even further, giving the feeling as if he had just seen right through her. She then proceeded to ignore him for the rest of the school day.

* * *

She stayed a little behind, having hatched a totally reckless, perhaps even brainless plan while she had waited for the classes to end. She was going to become a first degree stalker. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't pumped up, holding back her evil grin and nearly jumping up and down like a hyperactive kid. Yep, she was going to follow a certain blond male. Most distinct features include a permanent, creepy smile, shoulder-length blond hair and a lingering scent of oranges.

Once most of the class had cleared out, she headed out. She made sure to stay at a safe distance to not let him sense her presence, since now she knew he most likely was very capable in doing just that. After a few blocks, he met up with some short girl with blond pig tails. And a very loud mouth and a painful personality. The thing that was most noticeable though, was the zanpakuto tied to her back.

It seems Shiho wasn't the only one to think of following Hirako. While the two were fighting it out over something, Orihime and Chad made themselves known.

"There he is." A voice came from behind the two.

"Orihime-chan.." Hirako said.

Shiho took this as a cue to close in on the people to hear the conversation.

"Shinji." The short girl said, motioning for him to come closer with her finger, before headbutting the guy.

"You were followed, dipshit!" The short girl yelled.

"Even if I asked Kurosaki-kun what was going on," Orihime started, making Hirako and the girl turn around towards her. "I'm sure he'd just tell me it was nothing. So I thought I would ask you directly, Hirako-kun." She said seriously.

 _Yes yes, go go Big Boobs. You are saying the right things!_

"Who are you? And what do you want with Kurosaki-kun?"

The shorter girl smirked. "Heh. You think we're just gonna tell you?"

A strange silence ensued.

"Sarugaki Hiyori." The girl said, making Orihime and Chad stare at her dumbly.

"Huh?"

"Not 'huh?'. It's my name. My name!" Hiyori pointed at herself. "Tell me yours!"

"Inoue Orihime." Orihime said awkwardly.

"Sado Yasutora." Chad followed her example.

Hiyori's eyes narrowed. "A princess and a tiger huh. Such excessive names!" She smiled wickedly. "Our names mean 'monkey' and 'lewd'! I'm so jealous!"

Hirako mumbled something with a dumb look on his face which made Hiyori smack him again with her sandal.

"But she's got such smooth hair and a killer rack! She really pisses me off, this girl." Hiyori continued as if nothing happened.

"That's no normal inferiority complex.." Hirako said while holding his bloody nose. "That's no way to talk about Orihime's attributes.."

That earned him another hit from Hiyori's killer sandals.

"Well, whatever. I have nothing to tell you." Hiyori said, eyes narrowing down further. "So if you'll just die here.."

Shiho's eyes widened and she was just about to cut in and stop the girl when she grabbed the hilt of her zanpakuto, but Hirako quickly grabbed his companion and broke into a run. "Excuse us!" He yelled back, running away from the location as fast as his legs could take him.

Shiho just blinked dumbly a few times, looking at the spot they were standing on just a few seconds ago.

 _Tsk. They got away. But.. at least Orihime and Chad are alright. I have a feeling this would've ended badly if Hirako hadn't stepped in. Well.. There's nothing for me to do here now and I won't be able to catch up to those two either._

She scratched her head and sighed.

 _Oh well.._

Shiho turned around and left for her shelter, leaving the two confused humans behind.

* * *

 ** _To be continued._**


	7. Onslaught: a fluttering black wing

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

I'd like to thank my friend for drawing me a nice book cover. Praise your drawing skills, mine are horrid! Really, thank you very much C:

 **Datenkuroshi** – roughly translates to 'The fallen angel of a black tempest'.

 **Sonido** – a high-speed movement technique of the Arrancar. It is equivalent to the Shinigami's Shunpo.

 **Shikai** – initial release of the zanpakuto.

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**  
 _Onslaught: a fluttering black wing_

.

Shiho glared at the vile stack of papers in front of her. No matter how many she filled in, signed, read over and so forth, the amount of papers seemed to only grow in numbers, which in her opinion, was goddamn illogical. She now kind of regretted not leaving more paperwork for Kyoraku-taicho and Ukitake-taicho. Well, it's not as if she wasn't able to take care of all of this, but she also had 'homework' which never seemed to end just as well.

She groaned and threw herself on the ground in annoyance.

 _I'd bet on a year's worth of sake, that Hitsugaya appointed me to watch the Carrot Top, knowing full well of what it entails. This must be his 'punisment' for coming to the human world with the rest of the freaks(minus Rangiku). Speaking of Rangiku.. I haven't seen her for a couple of days now. Should take a break, giver her a call and go try out some local delicacies.. And sample some fine liquor. She would definitely like that. Well, as long as her dear capt'n is willing to let her go._

Shiho dug through her bag, pulled out her cell and begun searching for Rangiku's number. She was about to hit the call button when a heavy reiatsu made itself known near her, approaching at a fast pace. Her eyes widened and she quickly scanned her phone, looking at the pre-installed hollow radar.

 _So many. One headed my way, rest are dispersing elsewhere. What's their objective?_

 _…_

 _Fuck. They plan on attacking everyone who has even the smallest trace of reiatsu._

She checked the radar again.

 _Orihime seems well protected; she has both Hitsugaya and Rangiku nearby. Ikkaku and Yumichika seem to be closing in on one of the Arrancar as well, same goes for Ichigo and Rukia. Urahara shop is clearly safe._

 _..We'll make it._

Shiho nodded to herself seriously and popped a soul candy in her mouth, instantly separating from her gigai. She hurriedly exited the building and begun running towards a more rural area, leading the arrancar along. Since the costs of the destroyed buildings and whatnots came out of her own pocket, the least she could do is fight in place, that would keep the costs down. She passed another two or three warehouses before she was suddenly cut off by the pursuing arrancar.

 _He's fast! Sonido?_

"There's nowhere to run, little girl." He mocked Shiho, malicious grin on his face.

The arrancar was a lean-built male with short hay-coloured hair. He sported a similar outfit to those, who invaded before Hitsugaya's advance team's arrival, Ulquirra and Yammy. His jacket was left open, showing the hole in his chest. The mask was small, running over his nose and his cheekbones. Under the mask he had two horizontal black markings. His zanpakuto was tied to the sash around his waist.

"I wasn't running around aimlessly arrancar. I just wanted to fight somewhere uninterrupted, where people won't come out and start screaming at the horrid noises you'll make, after I paint the ground below red with your blood." Shiho smiled cockily.

The arrancar narrowed his eyes slightly. "You shinigami.." He disappeared just to reappear behind Shiho to attack her unguarded back. "..Are way too arrogant!"

He slashed down at her back, but was blocked by Shiho's zanpakuto. She had her face turned slightly on the side, assessing the arrancar, smile gone from her face while she held her katana firmly and parried the attack away.

"Oh? So you can actually fight a little. Guess it won't be a one-sided slaughter after all." The arrancar said.

Shiho cocked her brow. "And who's arrogant now?"

The arrancar rushed in again, attacking Shiho relentlessly. That lasted for quite some time, yet he couldn't land a single solid hit on the woman. All his attacks were either blocked or evaded.

"Hado #31, Shakkaho."

The arrancar's eyes widened, getting hit directly in his abdomen. He was sent flying a couple of meters away, trying to catch his breath. Shiho stared at the arrancar apathetically.

"Is that it, arrancar?" She asked, bored. "I was expecting to get a real fight, this can't even be called a warm up."

The arrancar narrowed his eyes, clearly pissed. He stood up and glared at the woman.

"My name is Biel Vasquez, arrancar #19. I was planning on going easy on you, but I guess your luck just ran short."

"Amai Shiho, 3rd seat of the 5th division. Please do not disappoint me." Shiho responded.

"You'll regret this, shinigami! STING, AVISPÓN!" He roared, releasing his resurrección.

Shiho jumped back a little, cautious.

 _His reiatsu nearly doubled._

A burning pain roared through her arm. Her eyes widened, noticing the arrancar's strange weapon lodged in her shoulder, she quickly slashed her zanpakuto at her enemy, but it was dodged.

 _He is much faster than before. He got me good there. I can't really use my left arm during this fight anymore._

She scanned the perimeter, noting he had disappeared yet again and only barely managed to block the next incoming attack that was aimed at her neck.

"What is it, girl? Can't keep up?" He laughed mockingly.

She finally got a visual on the arrancar. His whole left arm had transformed into a lance which had yellow-black stripes all over it. He had translucent wings coming out of his back and strange looking antennas sprouting from his head.

 _A bee?_

Shiho snorted unintentionally, desperately trying to stifle a laugh. She was fighting a bug. The arrancar didn't appreciate her laughter as he launched another attack at Shiho. Shiho had a hard time parrying all of the hits, getting grazed on her hip and sustaining a bigger gash over her chest. She winced in pain, leaping back to put some distance between them. It wasn't the pain that bothered her though. She had noticed from the first attack already, that something was wrong. There was more to his lance than just brute force.

"Not so tough now, are you shinigami? Have you figured out my ability yet?" He laughed evilly. "Let me enlighten you then. Everytime I land a hit, or even a mere scratch, with my lance, I suck up a portion of your Reiatsu. And so far I've hit you already 4 times." His eyes glew maniacally.

 _What a nasty ability._

Shiho stared at her opponent and let out a soft sigh. "Guess I'll need to step up my game then."

"Hahaha, think I'll let you?!" He flew towards her, his lance ready for another attack.

"Soar.. Datenkuroshi."

A strong gust of wind blew the arrancar instantly away when Shiho released her zanpakuto. He stared at the spot where she had been, mild shock written all over his face. Her zanpakuto was now nearly pitch black in colour, with only a faint glint of blue when the light hit it at the right angle. The hilt was a scary contrast to the blade, however. It was the whitest of white to which a white strip of cloth was attached that was wrapped around Shiho's right arm, right up to her shoulder. From the same shoulder sprouted a small, fluttering black wing.

She looked at the lance-wielding arrancar and smiled wickedly. "Now now, what's the matter. Can't get close?"

The arrancar charged forward without hesitation, intending to impale the bitch, but before he could even manage to get within range, he found his arm severed with heaps of blood oozing from his shoulder.

"AAAHHHHHHHHHH!" He cried out, holding on to his shoulder, where once was his arm. "WHAT DID YOU DO, YOU BITCH!"

Shiho just smiled at the man cruelly.

The arrancar, enraged, begun using sonido to disappear and try and perform surprise attacks. Shiho got a small graze on her shoulder blade when the enemy attacked, but she repaid him with a huge gash over the length of his face, cracking his feeble mask as well. He charged in once more, in hopes of draining the woman of her reiatsu, since the fight was beginning to turn in her favor, but in vain.

Shiho had had enough of this fight. She was running low on reiatsu, so she really didn't want to drag this out more than she already had. She used shunpo, disappearing completely from his opponents view and appearing behind him. She let the wind envelop her blade and slashed down through the arrancar's whole back, effectively taking him out.

She turned around, released her shikai and wiped the disgusting blood off of it before returning it into the scabbard. She was blind to the attack that came from behind her, piercing her leg. She quickly whipped her head around just to see the arrancar fading away, leaving nothing behind.

 _That damn asshole._

Shiho landed on the ground, light-headed. She was dizzy from losing so much reiatsu to her opponent and the last desperate attack of his was taking a toll on her.

"Damnit."

She collapsed onto the ground, mind falling into darkness.

Falling.

Falling..

* * *

"Shi-chan?" A voice echoed.

"She's unconscious you dipshit." Hiyori snarled. "And since when do you hang out with shinigamis. I hate them."

"I didn't know she was one, 'lright?" Hirako snapped back.

They looked at the unsconcious girl on the pavement. She had blood trickling down her shoulder and chest, plus some scratches here and there. She wouldn't die of these injuries, but they might worsen due to the rain and cold weather, if not treated.

Hirako sighed.

"Oy. OY. What are you doing, asshole?"

Hirako picked the small girl up into his arms.

"Shut up." He said dismissively, as he begun carrying her into one of the warehouses with an enraged Hiyori behind him.

* * *

 ** _To be continued._**


	8. Meet and greet

**_Disclaimer._** All characters and general content belong to Tite Kubo, although I do claim ownership for Amai Shiho and any other noncanon characters, fights or locations I decide to create. The story will be rated M for language, graphic violence and other adult scenes that may or may not take place in the future.

My apologies to everyone, who have been waiting for an update since forever. As fate would have it, right when I managed to get into the groove of writing this fanfiction, I had to move back to my home country, suffered a nasty break up and if that wasn't enough, I had to lose all my notes and ideas for this fanfiction (and others). Then after that I got severely busy with my new job, doing extra hours left and right, so all in all, I just haven't found the time, motivation nor energy to continue. Again, I apologize :c

 **Yakuza** – a Japanese gangster

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**  
 _Meet and greet_

.

Shiho was more than sure, that when she woke up, she would be wet, aching, groggy, and most of all, **wet**. She clearly remembered it raining, and a lot. But now that she stirred, she felt none of that. She was comfortable, on something rather warm and _soft_ , which, by the way, she hadn't felt since she left Soul Society, having slept in trees and on concrete and all. Her wounds weren't letting themselves known either, at least not in the extent she was expecting. The only thing she felt was a slight dizziness and hunger from lack of reiatsu, but that was it.

She curiously reached out her senses, but retreated just as quickly, nearly blanching. Wherever she was currently, there were also several other occupants and whereas some of them were carefully dimming their presence, others.. Well, were not so subtle. The few reiatsus she managed to catch, felt unlike anything she had ever sensed before. It was almost as if it were a mix between a hollow and a shinigami, as strange as that may sound. But that wasn't the reason she immediately put her guard up. These people, whoever they were, _were fucking strong_.

She cracked her eye open warily, and risked a glance over her surroundings. She was settled on a large yellow sofa in the middle of an enormous room. It appeared to be an abandoned building of sort, perhaps a warehouse. The rest of the room was not as comfortable as the soft-like-a-kitten's-belly couch, however. The whole place looked like an utter dump – broken windows, garbage laying on the ground in an occasional corner, boxes, both broken and whole scattered around the room, piles of steel beams and.. was that an erotic manga?

She was about to let out an amused snort, but was immediately stopped in her tracks by a god-forsaken loud yelling.

„What the fuck were you thinking Shinji?! Bringing that shinigami bitch here! Are you planning on revealing our existence to Soul Society after we have carefully been off their radar for nearly a century?" Hiyori roared loud enough to break eardrums.

Shinji, looking apathetic and disinterested, just continued to pointedly look away and pick his nose ever so gracefully.

„Are you even listening to me, asshole?" She snarled, stomping her foot on the ground with a loud thud. The only sign showing he had heard anything, however, was just a flick of his fingers, which assumingly sent a booger flying in that direction. Hiyori's eye started twitching dangerously and she began reaching for the weapon on her back, but before she could lunge herself towards the infuriating monkey, a large hand grabbed her gently from the shoulder.

„Now now, no fighting amongst ourselves. Calm down Hiyori." A soothing voice echoed in the room, breaking the tense atmosphere slightly. Hiyori reluctantly relaxed, sending a last hate-filled glare towards Shinji and then proceeded to march towards a chair and sat her ass down.

"I have to agree with the runt though. What went through your head when you brought that damn woman here?" Another voice, this time laced with irritation, could be heard from across the room.

"OY. WHO ARE YOU CALLING A RU-" The rest of her rant was thankfully muffled by someone.

"Ken-chan is a dummy, you don't understand anything!" A cheerful female voice boomed.

"Enlighten me then Mashiro." The previous male asked mockingly.

The girl, Mashiro, giggled happily. "It's obviously 'cause Shin-chan fell in love!"

Shiho nearly fell off the sofa after that last remark and had to really control herself to not smack herself, or better yet, that bubbly girl. The rest of the occupants of the room were having similar reactions to the obviously unrealistic claim. While they were arguing over the stupid matter (well, the airhead was doing most of the arguing), Shiho had some time to think. She was in quite a predicament. She was in a room full of quite powerful 'somethings' and being fair-minded as she was, she was sure they wouldn't mind disposing of her if they deemed it necessary. _But_. She was still alive. Sleeping. On their sofa. That made her pause. Shinji had brought her here, against his better judgement, so if it comes to feeble excuses, she could blame it on him.

She also had to sort through what she would tell Hitsugaya. **If** she said anything, that is. Blame it on her curiosity. They hadn't said much, per se, but did drop quite a few hints she could look into, such as Soul Society a hundred years ago. Perhaps some hushed incidents? The probability nearly made her drool in excitement.

Before she could ponder on the topic further, a sound worse than Hiyori's yelling resounded in the room. _Her cellphone_. Oh fucking crap. The room became eerily silent, as everyone's attention shifted towards the couch. As the tension grew in the room, she sighed internally and begun propping herself up gently, wincing slightly when she put pressure on her left arm. She fumbled with her clothes and fished out her phone, all the while ignoring everyone's stares.

She answered her phone and was immediately left rubbing her ear due to pain with the cell much further away from her head than what was normal.

"SHIHO! SHIHO IS THAT YOU? WHERE ARE YOU? ARE YOU OK?" Rangiku yelled into the phone. Shiho was sure _everyone_ heard her. That's how loud she was.

"Rangiku, calm down, please, I'm fine." She tried to appease her friend. She loved her friend dearly, but sometimes her worrying gave Shiho a migraine.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just glad. We've been trying to contact you for nearly three hours without much result. We couldn't find even a speck of your reiatsu anywhere. I was so worried." Shiho's eyes widened by a fraction. _Three hours?_ She had been out much longer than she initially thought. She understood why there wouldn't be much reiatsu left from her fight due to the bug's abilities, but if what Rangiku said is correct, these people must have some real powerful reiatsu blocking barrier up.

"I'm alright, really, now stop pacing and pissing off your captain already." Shiho smirked at the few seconds of silence from Rangiku's end, meaning she was completely correct in her assumption.

"Well I'm happy you're alright and.. Speaking of my captain, he would like a word." She said nervously and judging by the crackling sounds, Shiho assumed the phone was being handed over.

"AMAI-SAN!"

 _Oh good lord, more yelling? You people sure are pushing your luck today._

Shiho suppressed the urge to roll her eyes, albeit barely. "Yes, that would be me, Hitsugaya-kun." She replied sarcastically.

"Where have you been all this time?! Do you not know to keep your phone on? And it's Hitsugaya-TAICHO." She could almost see his eye twitching in annoyance.

She raised her eyebrow in confusion, however. Her phone was definitely **not** switched off. The barrier was quite amazing then, even if finally a call managed to break through it.

Now then.. Let the lying commence!

"My apologies _Hitsugaya-taicho_ ," She sneered "it appears my phone was damaged in my fight against the arrancar, which I didn't have time to check as I wasn't conscious."

"How are your injuries?"

"They are bearable." It seems he was going to let the lack of respect slide, seeing as he didn't reprimand her for it.

"Good, then report here as soon as possible, I need your report on the arrancar."

"Of course, just let me rest a little and grab something to e-" She begun, before being cut off.

"Those things can wait until after, come here immediately."

 _..What? Wait now, no. No!_

"No, I will not be running there _immediately_." Shiho barked in annoyance.

"Know your position, Amai-san," Hitsugaya responded in similar irritation, "Return, **now**."

 _Know my 'position'? Oh now you've done it._

Shiho saw red. She gripped her cell harder as her eye twitched in anger.

"Ok, listen here you damn shrimp. I am **exhausted**. I can barely get up, let alone run to you like a goddamn loyal puppy, ready to give paw when asked. My injuries are _bearable_ , not healed. I have basically no reiatsu to speak of and even before this fight I was already physically drained. You speak of position, yet you seem to conveniently forget, that although I do not hold your title, I have the same workload. Not to mention the extra work, namely Carrot Top, which you dumped on me."

She was nearly yelling out of anger by now and was becoming completely oblivious to the audience in the room. She tightened her hold on the phone. "So **NO** , I will **not** be returning immediately. I will rest, eat and wash off all the grime and _then_ I will give you my report."

 _Crack_.

She blinked a few times dumbly and looked at her phone – or more like what was left of it. Crushed remnants of plastic and alloy stared back at her from her hand. Shiho let out an exasperated sigh and proceeded to stuff the trash into one of her many pockets. Now that she was slowly calming down, she knew very well that she had crossed the line with the captain, but on the other hand she really couldn't give a rat's ass about it right now. She was exhausted, hungry and now the wounds were aching dully from the, ahem, exertion.

Shiho let out another sigh, when a quiet snicker reached her ears. She visibly tensed as the reality came crashing down and she remembered _where_ exactly she was. A second after blood rushed to her face, tinting her cheeks pink.

 _Oh my god, they heard all that. This is so embarrassing._

She dared a glance towards the rest of the room. Now that she wasn't laying, she could clearly make out the occupants of the room. Besides Hirako and the loud mouthed monkey there were another 6; a huge, literally **huge** man with pink hair, a guy who looked like a shampoo model with his wavy, long blond hair, another dude who looked like some yakuza with that permanent pissed off face, a lame looking nerd in a green jumpsuit and a star-shaped afro, a school girl and a green-haired power ranger. They were all eyeing her. Their expressions differed, though. Some were looking at her with mild curiosity, some with amusement and a few glanced at her in irritation (namely the monkey and the gangster).

Shiho raised her eyes to meet Hirako's and noted, that although his expression was guarded, his eyes betrayed an amused twinkle while he was eyeing her. She held her gaze and narrowed her eyes slightly, letting him know that she was _not_ amused. That just earned a chuckle from the infuriating man. She then conveniently remembered the 'reason' he helped her and quickly glanced away and begun fervently erasing that thought before it decided to appear on her face.

As the silence stretched on awkwardly, she was beginning to get fed up with it and decided that she would be the bigger person and break it. She slowly got on her feet, minding her wounds and faced the crowd.

"Thank you for giving me shelter and treating my wounds." She said, while fiddling with the sash around her waist nervously. "As you, ahem, heard, I'm required elsewhere so I will be taking my leave now."

She bowed stiffly and turned around and begun making her way towards the exit, hoping they would just let her leave without threats and an interrogation. You could say, that it was a tad too hopeful of her, that they wouldn't say anything. As the dumbfounded group processed her words, the monkey was the fastest to react.

"What? No questions?" She asked Shiho, clearly surprised.

Shiho glanced back, the corners of her lips quirked upwards. "No point asking questions you aren't willing to answer." She said, mischievous glint in her eyes. She bowed once more and left the warehouse, promising to herself to find out everything she could about them, with the hints she had gathered.

* * *

 ** _To be continued._**


End file.
